The Girl Who Didn't Cry Wolf
by NaturallyWritten
Summary: Kim knew she wasn't allowed outside after dark, it was a rule followed by the entire village. What she didn't know was why? What happens when she ignores the rules and goes outside? What happens when she comes across something, or someone? She know's he's hiding something but does she really want to find out? Sometimes it's alot better to just cry wolf.*Based on Red Riding Hood.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: Hey everyone! So this is our first story! As you see it's called "The Girl Who Didn't Cry Wolf" but we need to clarify something. This is NOT a supernatural story. No matter how much of it you may think it is. **It is AU but not supernatural. There are NO werewolves or vampires or anything.** Understood? Good! Now, I hope you enjoy our story!

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Just like any other day Kim entered her grandmothers cottage with a basket full of muffins. Her grandmother was insanely obsessed. "Grandma! I'm home!" Kim yelled from the living room. Strangely, there was no answer. A small smirk appeared on Kim's features, "I got muffins." Faster than was probably possible for a old lady Kim's Grandmother came out from hiding and ran to the basket of muffins.

Her Grandmother was covered in dust and dirt so Kim assumed she was cleaning. "Kimberley! Your home! Well would you look at that, you brought muffins!" Kim only laughed and handed her grandmother the basket. She gratefully took it and hugged it to her chest. This woman was obsessed. Kim's Grandmother slowly walked over to her chair by the fire.

She sat the basket down on the small table next to the chair and grabbed one from the basket. Kim hesitated a bit before following her grandmother and sitting in the chair across from her. "Uh...Grandma?" Kim started nervously. "Yes dear?" She said not taking her eyes off the muffin. Kim decided it was best to just get this all out, "Why is no one allowed to go outside after dark?"

Her grandmother stopped eating the muffin and looked at Kim with a serious expression before it slowly molded into a smile and she started laughing. After her laughter died down she turned to look at her granddaughter, "What?" Kim pulled out her sketchpad from her bag and showed it to her Grandmother. "I was just wondering because tomorrow is a full moon and that's the only time you can get a good look at the wolves. I really wan't to go to Wolf's Peak so I can get a good view of them in the valley."

Her mother was still looking at the notebook with a unreadable expression but Kim continued, "There very tame and I'm sure they won't mind if I sketch them and the moon-" Kim ranted but her grandmother stopped her. "Kimberly, please. Talking that fast is giving me a headache. Dear, I know that you enjoy drawing, I do, but you have to understand that there are certain rules that must be obeyed. Okay?" Her grandmother said. "Why can't I just-"

"Kimberly, we are done talking about this," her grandmother stated firmly. "You can draw anything you wish from the safety and comfort of our cottage tomorrow night., understood?" Kim sighed in defeat and hung her head low. "Fine." The smile that was previously on her grandmother returned once again, "Good. Now I need you to go to the market for me. Here's my list."

"Of course." Kim took the list and was about to walk out the door when she stopped herself. She went back to where her grandmother was siting and took her basket back. "I deserve these muffins." her grandmother gasped and shot her a glare before tossing her a red cloak. "Fine, but it's cold out there. Where your cloak." She fastened on her cloak before walking out of the cottage.

As Kim walked outside the familiar scent of charred meat welcomed her. No matter what time of day the scent always lingered around. She quickly made her way to the market saying a quick "hello" to anyone she knew and happened to pass. Right when she was about to enter the market, she heard her name. "Kim!" He yelled at her. She turned and saw Jerry running towards her. Those two have been best friends since...well, forever. Jerry caught up with her and signaled for her to stop while panting slightly.

"Kim, your not still going through with your plan are you?" Kim rolled her eyes at him and continued to walk towards the market, "Of course I am."

"Kim, are you crazy?!" Jerry whispered/yelled at Kim as she paid the man for the eggs she was buying. Ignoring Jerry, she thanked the man and continued walking to the next vendor. "Are you seriously asking me that? Look who I'm talking to," Kim joked. Jerry resisted the urge to roll his eyes and mockingly laughed, "Haha, very funny. But you can't sneak out!" Luckily there was so many people swarming around the market they weren't paying attention to what teenagers were talking about. Kim annoyed, turned on her heel and faced him. "Jerry, I'm 15! I'm not getting any younger! I want to do something to exciting before I run out of chances!"

"Kim, I'm older than you and I-" "By Two Weeks!"

He rolled her eyes at her and continued. "Kim, I'm older than you and I have done exciting things that aren't life threatening. You can't sneak out. You'll lose your head!" Kim narrowed her eyes at her latino friend, "I'll lose my head?" Kim questioned, slightly amused at his comment but at the same time slightly annoyed at him for being so stubborn. "Like a turkey on thanksgiving!" Jerry yelled.

Kim only laughed at him and continued walking, Jerry huffed and ran to catch up with her. He grabbed her by the arms and dragged her into a deserted corner. "Kim, there is a reason why we aren't allowed outside after dark. I don't know what it is," he stopped for dramatic effect and caused Kim to roll her eyes. "But I have this really bad gut feeling!" Kim shook Jerry off of her and went back to look through the stand. She stopped at one and began to sort through some of the carrots.

"Jerry, your _gut feeling_ is probably because of the rabbit that you ate for lunch," Kim said not talking her eyes of the carrots. "Oh, whatever! My point is, you never know what could be out there! Thugs! Wolves! Bears! Giant Rabbits that are mad and trying to get me back for eating one of their kids!" Jerry yelled dramatically. Kim turned her head to the side to give her friend a look. She then handed the man some money to pay for the carrots she put in her bag.

"Jerry, we don't know why we're not allowed outside after dark, so I'm going to go find out. I'm sure it's nothing and when I prove that, my grandma will finally let me go to Wolf's Peak and sketch the full moon over the field with the wolves tomorrow night," Kim said and began walking again. "Kim, you're in way over your head here."

She turned to Jerry once again, "No. No I'm not, Jerry. Nothing is going to be out there after night and I'll prove it!" Jerry sighed and gave in, "Fine Kim, just try not to get yourself killed?"

"There is nothing out there and nothing will kill me!" Jerry sighed and shook his head. "Whatever. Are you done shopping yet?" Kim ignored him and after picking up the last few items on her list she walked away from the market with Jerry trailing behind her. "Jerry, if you hadn't guessed before I'm going to need you to be my lookout." Jerry stopped walking and stared at her strangely.

"Are you asking me to lie for you?" Kim fidgeted with the end of her cloak. "Not really, just if my grandmother wakes up at night and starts to wonder where I am, tell her I'm with you!" "So I am lying for you!" Kim quickly put her hand over his mouth. "We don't need the whole world to know!" Jerry shook his head in disbelief, "I am not lying for you." Kim looked at him with wide eyes and a slight frown on her features.

"Kim no, that's not going to...fine! I'll lie for you!" Kim patted him on the back, "Now was that so hard?" Finally they reached her cottage and she waved goodbye to Jerry. She didn't bother calling for her grandmother and simply dropped the muffins on her table. She made her way to her room and flung herself onto her cotton bed. She was going to sneak out tonight and no one was going to change her mind.

Kim spent the rest of her day drawing in her sketchbook, she needed to do something to past the time while she waited because her heart was pumping at speeds unknown. She was still drawing in her sketchbook when she heard a knock on her door and her grandma came in. "Goodnight, Kim." Even though she was already sneaking out she couldn't help but try one last time, "Grandma..."

"My answer is still no. Goodnight Kimberly," she said with a stern look. "Goodnight grandma; Love you." Her grandmother cracked a smile, "I love you more." With that she closed the door and walked away. Kim carefully listened to her footsteps die away until she was sure they reached her own room. She them waited another ten minutes until she heard a small snore.

Kim laughed at how quickly she would fall asleep. She got up from her bed and carefully creeped over to the window and slowly opened it to avoid the creaking noise. "Come on in, Jerry." She whispered not wanting to wake up her grandmother, although it was highly unlikely. "Finally! Took you long enough," Jerry whined as he climbed through her window. "I think I know why we're not allowed to go outside after dark," Jerry started. Kim sighed, "Jerry, I'm not going to change my mind-"

"You didn't let me finish; Because it's so darn cold!" Jerry complained while rubbing his arms. "Man up," Kim joked while rolling her eyes. "Kim, let me come with you," Jerry stated. The fun demeanor was now gone and the air turned cold. "I can't let you do that, Jerry. I'm going on my own," Kim said while avoiding his gaze. "I just want to make sure that you don't end up killing yourself," Jerry said while Kim walked over to her closet to change into something more suitable.

"I thought it was too cold?" She asked trying lighten the mood. She finally came out of the closet wearing a long white dress covered in her red cloak. She doesn't know why but she feels safer with it on. She slipped on her red boots and turned to face Jerry. "It is cold, but I want to make sure you come back alive," Jerry said. Kim wanted to hug him until she heard the rest of what he was saying. "No other girls want to talk to me!"

He whined while sitting down on her bed. "I'll be fine Jerry, just cover me, okay?" She didn't wait to hear his answer as she jumped from the window and landed onto the dirt ground outside. "Kim!" Jerry yelled from the other side of the window. "What?" She asked annoyed. "Don't you need your sketchpad?" Kim slightly blushed and mumbled a yes before he threw it to her.

"Well, I'm off. Just don't trash my room." He smirked and called after her, "No promises." She turned her head and shot him a smile before walking away from the window. After a while for walking around Kim had a smug smile on her face, "See, Grandma? Nothing's out here." She said to no one but herself. At first she was a little jumpy but now she was a cool as a cucumber. After a couple of minutes of walking she made it to the forest that separated her from Wolf Peak.

She was about fifty-feet into the forest when she heard a twig snap and it wasn't her. "Hello?" She nervously called out. A little further away from her she saw a dark figure of some sort run past her. Ok, now she was scared. "Who's there?" She asked trying to keep her voice steady. The dark figure zipped passed her once again and she turned in a circle attempting to see it. When she was starting to think it was her imagination she heard a twig snap.

There was definitely someone out there. She stood where she was breathing heavily. "Haha, Jerry. Come on, it's not funny." She said laughing nervously praying that it was only Jerry trying to teach her a lesson. Suddenly something attacked her, she couldn't see who or what it was because they attacked her from behind. She quickly turned around expecting to see some kind of hairy monster but instead all I saw was a boy who's brown eyes were clouded with panic. Because of the darkness, that was all she could see.

"G-Get away from me!" Kim yelled backing up. The boy only stood there. Kim stopped and tried to get a better look at the boy. "Wait, who are you?" Before he could answer something flew by her head and landed on the tree trunk next to her. The boy diverted his attention to the tree. She could see it in his eyes that he was scared. Suddenly the boy jumped on top of her knocking her to the ground. Kim was about to scream when she was something fly above her head. _An Arrow_.

Kim looked up and saw that the boy was staring angrily at her. There was a loud grunt and then leaves crunching under someones feet, retreating away from them. Then, just as suddenly as he knocked her down to the ground, he jumped off of her and ran back to wherever it came from.

Kim sat up slowly still shaken about what had just happened. She laid her back against a tree trunk and took a few deep breaths. The wind blew and she felt a sting coming from her left arm. Slowly she reached her hand over there. She winced at the contact and after looking closely she realized it was blood. The first arrow must of got her. Still holding her arms she turned on her heel and ran home, not stopping for anything. She just really needed a friend that would tell her, "I told you so" right now.

Back at the forest, the boy who tackled her slowly came out of hiding once she knew she was gone and picked up her sketchbook that laid abandoned on the floor.

Kim clumsily ran back into the village and to her cottage. She quickly knocked on her window and held her arm tighter. She wasn't a expert but she knew she was losing a lot of blood. As soon as he opened the window she jumped through and collapsed on her bed. Jerry who still stood there puzzled at the window made his way over to Kim. He saw her sitting there, crying, covered in dirt and twigs. He grabbed her shoulders lightly, "Kim, what happened?" He asked her concerned.

Jerry," she whimpered before running into his arms. He hugged her back until she felt something oozing down his arm. He pulled away from her and realized she was bleeding, "Kim! Lets get that patched up." He said grabbing her hand and dragging her into the bathroom. She knew he wanted to ask questions but even Jerry knew that this wasn't the time.

Unknown to both of them a pair of brown eyes appeared at the window, but they weren't the same as before. They were dark, evil, and full of hatred. After a while the eyes disappeared but the two of them never noticed as they were to busy trying to clean her wounds without making too much noise.

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Author's Note: There it is! Chapter 1! We hope you like it! Once again, not a supernatural story. Now we put some awesome outfits for this chapter on our profile so check those out, please? Now can you do us a favor and click that button that says, "Post Review" it would mean a lot. Until next time!

_Naturally_Writers


	2. Chapter 2

Authors Note: Heylo! Fifteen reviews! You guys are so nice! So we decided to say thank you by giving you guys a five-thousand word chapter! It took us like two-three days so a little appreciation would be nice. ;) I hope you guys like this chapter!

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"Okay, what happened?"

This was the part Kim wasn't looking forward too. She didn't want to tell Jerry about how terrifying it had been in that forest and..how much he was right. Kim knew that he would use it against her one day and go on and on about how she should listen to him more often, that's just how Jerry was. Both of the teens sat down on her bed and Kim avoided eye contact. "I-I don't know," Kim lied.

Jerry raised a eyebrow at her, "Well, you where there weren't you?" Kim sighed and pulled the blanket she was holding closer to her chest. "I was fine until I got to the woods, the one that separates the village from Wolves Peak. I-"

"You went into the woods?!" he screeched at her. "Yes?" She answered quietly. Barely anyone went in the woods at daytime so it's pretty insane to go there at night. I mean, it screams danger! There are several rumors about it that make it seem even more scary. No one went in those woods for anything, unfortunately going in the woods was the only way to Wolf's Peak. A grandmother even said that her daughter went in there once and never came out. That's why she was left to take care of her kids.

The thought of that made Jerry sick to his stomach especially since his best friend almost died in there. The thought of never seeing her again made him more sick. The two teenagers were close you would think they were brother and sister. Neither did anything serious without consulting the other first. Kim and Jerry only had each other as friends. Everyone thought Jerry was annoying and no one ever got the chance to talk to Kim because her head was always buried in her notebook, but somehow, the two fit each other perfectly.

Jerry groaned at his friends carelessness, "Wait, how did you get out of there alive if you got hit with something?" Jerry asked while pointing at her arm. "It's a funny story actually." She laughed half-heartidly. He gave her a look that clearly said to stop beating around the bush. Kim sighed and avoided his gaze once again. "I was fine until I ran across a boy. I couldn't see anything but his eyes. Anyway her just stood there and looked at me until someone else shot a arrow at me, which I guess got my arm," I said while putting a hand on the bandage but retreating it as a wave of pain coursed through me because of the contact.

"He turned around to see who it was and it looked like he was angry-" Jerry stopped her. "Wait, who was the other guy that shot your arm?" He asked angrily as if he was going to go and find him. "I don't know. I only heard him grunt and then the leaves crunching as he walked away." Kim sighed and replayed the memory in her head, she couldn't help but wonder why he was trying to shoot her.

"Anyway, the boy tackled me to the ground and saved me from getting hit with the second arrow. After the shooter left he jumped off of me and ran away. That's when I ran home," Kim said finishing her story. Jerry nodded his head as if he was processing the information, "So your saying you weren't alone?"

"No, Jerry. I was completely alone and I shot myself with a arrow and tackled myself to the ground. THINK A LITTLE!" Kim yelled at him sarcastically. Jerry rubbed his ear in a attempt to get rid of the ringing that Kim caused. "Okay, stupid question. So, your telling me that if this guy wouldn't have been there, you would have been killed?"

Kim weakly nodded and looked at the ground. She had to admit, she was careless. Suppose, that guy wasn't there or he didn't get there in time? She would of been dead. Jerry would of been devastated and her grandma would...she doesn't even know. "Come here." Kim looked up and saw Jerry holding out his arms. "You know you want a slice of Jerry pie.."

Kim couldn't help but smile at his antics and scooted closer to him and embraced him in a hug. "Go ahead, say it." Because of their height difference he was slightly looking down at her. "I told you so." Kim gasped and lightly smacked him in the arm, "I was kidding!" Kim said while trying to hold down her laugh. "I wasn't," Jerry said while smiling like a idiot.

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Jerry had left a little after their conversation leaving Kim alone in her house. She hadn't told Jerry everything that was on her mind though, like how she wanted to go back. You would think that after someone experiences something like that you would want to stay away from it, but Kim doesn't. She wanted to know who that boy was and why he was in that forest. She has never seen him before so, does he live in the forest?

_Is that why were not allowed to leave after dark? Because of the arrow guy? Or is it the boy? How did the adults know this though? Does that mean that they knew about that thing all along? If that's the case then, grandma must know about it!_

Realizing this she quickly hoped out of bed and mad my way into her grandmothers room. Kim knew that if there was any useful information in here it would be hidden. Not even bothering to check the bookshelves Kim went straight to he large chest that was under the bed. It was layered in a blanket of dusk so Kim grabbed a abandoned towel on the floor and wiped it clean enough to see the lock.

Knowing her grandmother she wouldn't hide the key far away. She turned over the chest and was happy to see the key taped onto the bottom. She unlocked the latch and opened the chest. Inside there was a portrait of a women and a man holding each other, a broken arrow, and a book. As much as Kim wanted to examine the other items she knew what she was looking for would be in the book.

She carefully picked up the book and placed it on her lap. She saw a string hanging out the bottom end of the book, a page was marked. Hesitantly she opened to that page and started reading,

_Dear Diary,_

_Another person was taken today. This can't keep happening. We can't allow anyone else to go in the woods. The wolf is-_

"Kim?"

She heard her grandmothers voice from the living room. Startled she threw the book back into the chest and quickly locked it shut. Not having time to tape the key back in place she stored it in her pocket. She was pushing the large chest back under the bed just as her grandmother was coming in. "Kim?" Kim quickly snapped her head up to face her grandmother. "H-Hi," she stuttered out.

Her grandmother looked at her skeptically, "What are you doing?" Kim jumped to her feet and brushed off her shorts. "J-Just cleaning is all. I figured since you've been out all morning you wouldn't want to come home to a dirty room so I cleaned it! Surprise?" Kim was never very skilled at lying, she tried to force out a smile but she was sure it looked a little weird.

"If you were cleaning then why does it look like you didn't clean a thing? It looks the same way it did when I left." Her grandmother asked while looking around the room. "Uh, that's because I was dusting! When I said clean I meant I was dusting. See?" Kim said holding up the towel which she used to clean the chest. "Well, I guess it does look shinier in here. Thank you, Kimberley."

"It was nothing," Kim said. For once she was happy her grandmother didn't have the best eyesight and couldn't see the huge amount of dust that was still in the room. "Hey, Grandma? Can I go over to Jerry's?" Kim asked. "Sure, but before you go-" Her grandmother turned and discovered that she was alone in the room. As soon as the conformation left her grandmothers mouth Kim bolted out of the room and out the door, grabbing her red cloak on her way and running all the way to Jerry's house. Which lucky for her, wasn't far away.

Kim hastily knocked on Jerry's door, rubbing her hands together afterwords to keep them warm. It's been oddly cold today. Jerry opened the door seconds later. He smiled at Kim and was about to ask her to come in and why she was here because they usually hung out at Kim's place, but his smile faded when he saw how out of breath she was and the troubled expression that was on her face. "Please tell me you didn't go into the woods again," he pleaded.

"No, I didn't. But I have to talk to you. Now," She panted.

"Come on in," Jerry said while steeping aside, letting Kim come in. Kim walked in and took in the familiar scent of lavender that she was greeted to every time she came here. Like her grandma was obsessed with muffins his mom was obsessed with the scent of lavender. They went into Jerry's room and she was about to take a seat on his bed when she noticed it was covered in dirty clothes and food. "Ok, when you come over to my house I have the decency to clean up. Jerry, this place is a mess!"

"Don't judge me! I just haven't gotten around to it! Now, are we here to talk about how dirty my room is or you?" Kim sighed and took a seat on the wooden chair near his desk. "Might as well talk about the first one, this place probably hazardous for my health," Kim mumbled under her breath. "Just tell me why your over here!"

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"Okay, so your telling me there was a creepy old chest, a picture of two old people-"

"With a book and a arrow," Kim added. "Right with a book and a arrow, and this book had a page marked that was saying something about a wolf attack?" Jerry finished making sure he was taking everything in. If Kim told this to anyone else they probably would of laughed in her face or took her to a doctor, but with what happened yesterday, Jerry was expecting practically anything to come out of his best friend's mouth. They weren't in Jerry's room anymore because Kim apparently couldn't stand the stench. She would prefer the over powering stench of lavender over mold any day.

Now they were sitting on the carpet in the living room. His mom left for the market a few minutes ago so they were alone. "At least that's what I think it said. It also said something about someone being kidnapped in the woods that say and then it said something about the wolf but then my grandmother walked in." Jerry groaned, "Ugh. That woman has the worst timing." He said while leaning back so his back was now on the floor.

"Hey!" Kim yelled slightly offended. "That's my grandma your talking about about! But your right, she does have bad timing." Jerry thought a little bit more about the information before shrugging. "So, now what? Do you think what attacked you was a wolf?" Jerry asked. "No, I'm pretty sure it was just a boy."

"Who knows? Maybe it was a wolf and it just wanted you to think that it was a boy or something?" Jerry suggested. Kim rolled her eyes, "Jerry I seriously doubt that. I may not be a expert on wolves but I know that they only attack if you put them in danger. Like if you had a knife pointing at them or something. They're actually very peaceful. Almost like a dog, they're like...companions."

Jerry propped up on his elbows so that he could face her. "Kim, are you going insane?" He asked her seriously. "Kim they're wolves. Carnavores! More than happy creatures that would be more than happy to eat us for lunch!" Kim raised her eyebrows at him, "That;s it Jerry. Scream loud enough to actually wakr up wolves!" Kim sarcastically shot back. Jerry sighed, "Kim, I'm not joking-"

"Neither am I!" She remarked. "Look, don't flip out or anything but at this point you probably think I can't get more insane so I'm just going to say it. I'm going back into the woods tonight to see what attacked me." As soon as the words slipped out of her mouth Jerry shot up from where he was and grabbed her shoulders. "ARE YOU CRAZY! THERE IS NO WAY IN HECK YOU ARE GOING IN THERE!"

Kim brushed his hands off her shoulders and looked at him, "I just need to know what attacked me." Jerry looked at Kim as if she was crazy and you know what, she probably was. Going back in there after what had happened was just asking for trouble. "Jerry, don't look at me like that. I'm just going straight through the woods and then straight to Wolf's Peak. If I run, I should be okay. The forest didn't seem that thick," Kim argued.

"That's what they want you to think!" Jerry yelled. Kim rolled her eyes at her friend, "Okay, are we talking about wolves or evil master minds here?"mShe siad slightly amused. "Wolves are evil master minds!" Jerry said as he sat back down across from her. "And you are a idiot." Jerry gasped at her comment pretending to be hurt.

"I know how you feel about this Jerry but you can't change my mind." Jerry just stared at her, worry written all over his face, but after about ten seconds his face lit up like a christmas tree. "Wait! My mom kept a diary too! Maybe we can see if she wrote anything about this "wolf." Did you happen to see the date?" Jerry asked. Kim nodded, "December 17th. About two years before I was born."

You could practically see the light bulbs going off is head. Jerry and Kim got up and wandered off to his mom's room. He went over to the side of her bed and pulled out a large blue chest, it was similar to Kim's grandmothers but this one didn't have as much dust on it. He fumbled with a lock for a while before groaning, "We need a key."

Kim remembering the key she stored in her pocket earlier sent her hand down in the pocket and fished out the key. "What about this one? This is the one that I used to open my grandmother's so maybe it will open your mom's?" Jerry took the key and entered it in the key hole. After a few turns and clicks, it opened. Jerry's mom had stored a lot more item's than Kim's grandmother did.

Kim sat next to Jerry as they routed through newspapers, drawings, scrolls, pictures but they stopped when they came across a portrait. It had the same frame as the other one Kim saw but just a different photo. It was a man with jet black hair and in his arms was a baby. Was it just Kim or did the baby look a lot like Jerry? Jerry hesitantly picked up the portrait and caressed it in his hands. "It's in the same frame as the other one I found, just a different photo," Kim stated.

"I feel like I've seen these people before," he said while looking at the picture. "Well, it looks old. That's for sure." Kim nodded. "Wait, turn it over." Jerry looked at her strangely but still turned it over revealing a couple of numbers written in pencil. The writing was worn out but you could vaguely make it out. "Jerry...that's the day you were born." Kim looked over at Jerry and noticed that he looked genuinely scared. "What are you saying, Kim?"

"Do you think, that's your dad?" Kim saw Jerry cringe. She knew that it probably wasn't the best idea to bring it up but it was a huge possibility that it was. "No, I don't." Jerry handed Kim the portrait without looking at her and resumed to search through the trunk. She knew that she may of offended him when she brought up his dad and he may be a little mad at her but she knew it wouldn't be long until the silence was broken.

"Hey, I found it!" Yep, that wasn't long at all.

Jerry pulled out a small book from the trunk. It was black unlike the red one that she found in her grandmother's trunk. Jerry flipped through pages until he came to a page that was dated, December 17th. Kim put the portrait and gazed over Jerry's shoulder at the diary entry. "Well what are you waiting for, read it!"

_"Today has been like any other day. I went to the market to by some_ carrots...Man my mom is boring!" Jerry complained. Kim slapped his arm, "Keep reading!" Jerry sighed and continued, "_I heard that someone went in the woods again, the one that seperates us from the small ledge on the other side..._I guess your not the only one stupid enough to go in that forest."

"Are you done insulting me?" Kim asked annoyed. "Yah, pretty much." Jerry was about to continue reading again but he stopped and looked at the page closely, "The entry stops there." He examined the book before turning the page. "There's more on this page, _December 18th. There is still no sign of the boy who dissapeared in the forest the other night. I fear that the wolf has gotten to him. His mother even made the mistake of going in the woods to look for him and now she hasn't returned either. I talked to Mr. and Mrs._ Crawford,"Jerry stopped and looked over at Kim but she turned her head away from him.

"Just keep reading."

Jerry sighed and continued, "_They told me they wanted to go in after them in case they were in trouble but I wouldn't let them of course. I fear for the little girl and her mother though._" Jerry stopped. "Here's the next day,_ I have received news that the child and her mother have indeed been kidnaped. By who? I have no idea. The Crawford's say there has been several more happenings like this throughout the past month. This cannot keep happening. Too many lives are being lost out of curiosity. We must make sure nobody goes out after dark and enters those woods."_

"So your telling me that your mom was one of the people that made that stupid law?" Kim questioned. "Not only my mom, it's says here that your parents and grandparents actually made it so it was a rule. Like a official law," Jerry said while pointing to the book. "What?!" Kim screeched. "Yep, I guess that means-"

Jerry was cut off mid-sentence by the sound of his baby sister giggling like the two-year old she is. "Dang," Jerry mumbled before throwing everything back into the trunk, closing it and shoving it back under the bed in record time. The two of them scrambled to their feet and walked back over to the living room where Mrs. Martinez was just walking through the door with Jerry's little sister, Kelsey.

"Hey Kim!" His mom greeted cheerfully. "How are you guys?" Kim forced out a smile, "Peachy. Just peachy," Kim said while mumbling the last part. Before his mom could ask any more questions Kim ran past Kelsey and Jerry's mom and out the door. Jerry followed promptly after. "So the picture that was in your grandmother's chest...you have no idea who was in that picture?" Jerry asked as they walked back towards Kim's house, It was beginning to get dark.

Kim shook her head, "I have no idea. I mean it could of been anyone. I know it wasn't my parents though. I have a picture of them by my bed. The people in the portrait looked a lot older them the one by my bed." Jerry furrowed his eyebrows, "Hey, it still could of been your parents. The picture by your bed could of been taken after the one in the portrait."

Kim tried to imagine the picture on her bed to the one in the trunk. He was right, it still could of been her parents. "I guess your right, but that still doesn't explain why there was a broken arrow in there." Jerry only shrugged. "Well, maybe it has something to do with the arrow that almost shot you last night. Speaking of that, are you positive that you want to go back in those woods? If that's the case, then I am coming with you." Jerry said as they continued to walk towards Kim's house.

_"_Jerry, it's going to be_ freezing."_

"Have fun and don't get killed," Jerry said and Kim laughed in what felt like a long time today.

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When the time came for Kim to actually leave, Jerry was nervous. He knew that she was lucky to come back out of that forest alive the first time and next time, she might not be as lucky. He was worried about her. He wanted to do what a good friend would and support her decision but, would a good friend let her go? "Are you sure you want to do this, Kim?" Jerry asked her. "Jerry stop worrying. I'll be perfectly fine. If I do come across something dangerous, I have a stick. Pleas, stop worrying." Kim said from her bed where she was packing up her belongings and putting them in a bag.

"Fine, but if your not back within three hours; I'm going to come look for you." Kim narrowed her eyes dangerously at him, "six." Jerry took a step closer to her, "four." Kim scoffed at him, "five." Kim stared deep into Jerry's eyes and after a minute he gave in. "Fine! In five hours!" Kim smiled at him, "Great. See you later!" Kim hoped out of the window and began to walk away but she still felt Jerry's eyes on her. Annoyed she turned around, "You worry too much! I'll be fine and be back before you know it. Your face is going to freeze like that if you keep it that way!"

"Hey!"

She stopped walking and went back over to him and planted a kiss on his cheek. "Don't worry. I'll be fine." She started to walk away once again but still felt him watching her. "Seriously, stop worrying!" She yelled to him. "I'm still worrying!" Jerry yelled back with a slight smile. "Jerry!" "Fine!"

With that Kim left from the window and ran towards the direction of the woods. When she got to the edge of the forest she hesitated. Did she really want to go in there again? What if Jerry was right and didn't come back. No. She couldn't think that way. Instead she decided to focus on the scenery. _It really is beautiful, I really should draw this-Wait, where was my sketchpad!_

Kim frantically searched in her bag but couldn't find it. Now that she thinks about it, she couldn't recall seeing anywhere today. Kim had been so wound up in about the "wolf" and all the other things that have been happening she hadn't even realized she hadn't brought her sketchpad out of the forest with her yesterday. "You have got to be kidding me! It could be anywhere!" Kim said while looking around the forest.

Some of you may be thinking, "Who cares! It's only a sketchpad, right?" Not exactly, it was a sketchpad that Kim had owned ever since she was a little girl. She had fifteen years worth of artwork in that book! Even if some of them are just scribbles from when she was three.

Suddenly, her notebook was the last thing on her mind. Out of the corner of her high she was something move. Quickly she turned around in a hope to see who or what it was but whens he turned she saw nothing but a endless trail of tree's.

But then she saw it again. This time it was closer. She could feel goosebumps crawling up her arm. Half of her told her to run but the other half told her that she needed to see what it was. She heard a light rustling behind her and turned around. This time the figure didn't bother hiding. She could make out that it was a male but she couldn't identify if it who it was or what they looked like because of the shadows that hovered over them. Kim narrowed her eyes at the man.

"Are you looking for this?" The man asked. Kim squinted at the object he was holding. It looked like a book, her sketchpad to be exact. "Where did you find that?!" Kim was so mad at the said person right now, she completely forgot about the reason she came into this forest, she was only focused on the man who supposedly stole her notebook. "That doesn't belong to you! Give it back!" The boy stepped closer, Kim could see him more clearly now. Not his facial features per say but the outline of his body. "I'm aware it doesn't belong to me, but how do I know it belongs to you? If you could prove that I'd be happy to return it."

Kim narrowed her eyes at him. "I don't have to tell you anything," Kim said while crossing her arms. "Fine then. I'll just keep it," the boy said. Even though Kim couldn't see his face she could sense him smirking through his voice. Kim huffed and was about to tell the boy another insult when he spoke up again, "Wait, are you the girl from...come closer." Kim hesitated before she stepped closer to the boy, for all she knew he could be a stalker! After some thought she took a few steps forward until she was face-to-face with the boy. The boy was slightly taller by a couple of inches so she had to look up to not look him in the chest. Kim refused to take off her hood, though.

"Now, may I have my sketchbook back. You have no use for it anyway," Kim said while holding out her hand. The boy didn't say anything and just stared at her. The boy was actually quite attractive. His hair was brown unlike her blonde hair. It was cut to his shoulders and a very, very, very, small part of her wanted to run her hand through it. "What?" Kim asked resisting the urge to stutter. Still he stayed silent, he appeared to be examining her. He looked into her eyes and she refused to break the gaze. She noticed that eyes were brown, the same brown eyes from last night!

"Wait, were you the person who saved me from the arrow last night?" Before the boy could respond he looked behind Kim, grabbed her wrist and quickly pulled her closer causing her to crash onto his chest. They stumbled back a bit causing the boy to crash into a tree. Kim felt her stomach twist into nots. What she was trying to figure out is why she was feeling a "tickle" in her stomach. It wasn't necessarily a bad feeling..it felt kind of fuzzy? Was she attracted to a person she hasn't even seen? _No, that's not it. I must be sick_, she thought.

Kim wasn't sure why he had done that but she got a small idea when a arrow flew past her barely missing her by a inch. Kim suddenly felt like running back home and crying all over again. If Jerry found out about this, he would freak. He would never let her leave his sight! Then there's her grandmother, what would she think? "Did you learn nothing from last night?" The boy whispered in her ear. "Uh.." Kim was too stunned to talk, she was at a loss of words...and still up against a strangers chest. "Are you a idiot or something?" Suddenly the grip on her arm tightened and he dragged her further into the woods. Kim now knew how Jerry felt. "No! I'll have you know I'm-"

"A world class idiot for coming back into these woods after almost dying here last night?" The figure finished her sentence. "Hey! I am not a world class idiot! Probably just an idiot," she said pouting at the end. "Yeah, well, you made a mistake coming back here tonight." Kim narrowed her eyes at him. "Why? You saved me again. I never did say thank you but now, with the way your treating me? I probably never will-" Before Kim could finish, something large and wooden hit her head causing her to black out.

The boy winced as he saw Kim wobble around before falling to the ground. The boy groaned and looked up towards the sky. "REALLY?!" He whined. He huffed as he bent down to pick up Kim. He threw her over his shoulder securing her with one arm around her waist. He looked at her once last time. "Man if that bumps get any bigger she's going to look like unicorn," he commented as he walked further into the woods.

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Author's Note: So, Kim finally met the mystery boy...who do you think it is? We may surprise you. ;) We also have a other story called, Behind The Borders that you may like! Now, we need your help! Our life may be at stake! This is all you have to do...Review...

_Naturally_Writers


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Note: We are so sorry it took so long to update. One of us started school again, so it may be kinda hard. We'll try our best though! We also have a Twitter account now! We'll be posting sneak peaks and other information. One of us will even do a Twit Cam from time to time. Follow us! We're under the same name. :) But you don't want to hear about that. You want to hear about the chapter! So without further interruption...Chapter three!

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_"Kim, please!"_

_"Get away from him!"_

_As hard as it was, she did. Without a single glance back she closed her eyes hard to secure the tears inside of them. Her heart was beating inside her chest so hard like it was begging to escape. Her legs ached and felt they were going to give out any second but she knew most likely he was still on her tail. She felt a hand grasp her wrist and yank her into the bushes and out of the pathway. Kim already knew who it was but refused to open her eyes, she couldn't stand to look at him after what he did. "Kim, let me explain."_

_She violently shook her head, "No. Your a liar. A stupid, deceiving liar." She refused to open her eyes. Kim felt him grab her other hand and she could feel his gaze burning on her. "Kim, I didn't-"_

_"No! I hate you. You deserve-"_

_It happened all pretty fast. He was too busy looking at her and she was too busy yelling at him, that none of them noticed the metal arrow fly through the bush and into his back until the very last moment. _

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Kim woke up with a start, she could feel the small droplets of sweat on her face and her breathing was going ridiculously fast. _It was just a dream_, she told herself. She sat up and sleepily wiped her eyes. Upon opening them again she realized something was different. Looking down she noticed she was sleeping on a couple of folded rags, not her cotton bed sheets. The ceiling was made out of stone dripping with dew and not her familiar oakwood. Looking to her left she noticed a small bucket of water with a towel thrown carelessly over the edge. "Where am I?" She whispered to herself.

"What was I thinking! Bringing her here of all places..."

Kim could hear slight whispering behind the wall. Hesitantly, she pushed herself closer to the wall and strained her ears. "What am I going to do! Should I knock her out again?" Kim scoffed at his thoughts. If he's outside than shouldn't there be a way out? Kim looked around the...place and saw a small ounce of light ahead of her. She sat up from the rags she was laying on a slowly began to walk forward the light and watched as it got bigger as she did so. In less than a minute she was once again outside. She looked behind her and identified that the "Place" she was inside of was in fact a cave.

Remembering why she came out in the first place Kim looked around the side of the cave where the person could of been speaking from. Thats were she found him. It was the same boy that she was talking to yesterday. Did he..kidnap her? Slowly, she proceeded to walk closer to the brunet who was no pacing back and forth with a troubled expression on his face. She finally got close enough to were if she just reached out she could touch him but he still didn't seem to notice her. "Um..hello?" The boy stopped in his tracks and quickly turned his head to face Kim. "Your awake."

"Yah, obviously. Do you mind telling me how the heck I got here?" The brunet nervously raised his hand to scratch the back of his neck and averted his gaze to the floor. "You don't remember?" Kim proceeded to roll her eyes at him. "If I remembered I wouldn't be asking." He seemed to think about it for a second before answering. "Long story short, you came back in the forest, which was a very stupid decision on your part, and you ran into me. I was then telling you about how stupid you were when something hit you on the head, knocking you out and giving you a very unattractive bump on your forehead."

Kim, self-conciously rubbed her hand on her forehead feeling a outline of a very bug bump. "Then I carried you here, simple as that." Kim took a step closer to him eyeing him. "Then why didn't you take me back to my house? Or at least near my village?"

"Maybe I didn't feel like walking in the dark," he said while avoiding Kim's gaze. She knew he was hiding something but it would do no good to keep petering him about it. "Well, it was nice to meet you...guy. Unfortunately, I have to leave now." Something flashed inside of his eyes as he moved in front of her to stop her from going further. "Sorry, but you can't do that."

Kim looked at him strangely. "Why is that?" Kim could practically see the wheels turning in his head. "It's not...safe."

"Safe? We're in broad daylight! What's _not_ safe about that?!" He rolled his eyes at her and turned away. "Why don't you look around? You've been asleep for a long time. It's not morning. It's almost sun-down." Kim tore her gaze away from him and sure enough, the sun that she thought was creeping it's was up was actually going down. "So what? It's only a few mi-"

"Miles. It's only a few miles, princess." Kim narrowed her eyes at the boy and resisted the urge to slap him. "First, don't call me that. Second, it only took me a few _minutes_ to get here." The boy laughed at her but not in a way of humor, in a way of mock pity? "If you need to know, once you passed out I carried you here and _that_ was indeed a few miles. It doesn't help that you're as fat as a cow. You may want to lay off the donuts." If she wanted to be insulted, she could of went to Jerry. Kim angrily stomped away from the brunet and began to make her way out of the forest. "Hey!"

Kim turned on her heel angrily and faced the smirking brunet. "What?" Kim could feel he was choking back a laugh. "Your going the wrong way!" Kim refused to look him in the eye as she turned around and began walking the other way. She didn't get that far though, she felt a hand reach out and grab her hand, forcefully yanking her back. "I can't let you leave," he said turning serious. "I can leave whenever I like!" She yelled, trying to pull her arm back.

She continued to struggle but the boy had a incredibly strong grip. After a while she looked up to face him and tried to read his expression. It had a small hint of amusement but mostly annoyance. Sighing, she gave up. "Fine! I wont go, can you tell me _why_ though?"

"I already told you. It's not safe." Kim let out a exaggerated sigh, "Can you be more specific?" He turned his head and avoided her gaze. "No." Kim didn't even notice his actions all that much, but she did notice that he was still holding her with a pretty tight grip. "Um..can you let me go, now?" They boy turned back to face her and eyed her carefully. "Will you run away?" He asked skeptically. "No! What am I six?" Hesitantly, he released her hand and she did what any kidnapped female would do, _run._

She didn't have the smallest idea of where she was going, all she knew was that he was a psycho that lived in the woods and if she stayed there any longer she wouldn't live to tell the tale. Unfortunately, she could here the footsteps coming closer behind her and only ran faster. After about five-minutes of running she felt herself getting light-headed. She never did have great stamina. Kim looked back to make sure he was far enough behind to not see her, then she steered to her left and hid behind a tree trunk.

She hid there for a good ten minutes until she was sure that he passed her. Kim was about to leave when a pair of arms captured her hands and pinned then above her head. The figure stepped on one of her feet, allowing a large shriek to come out of her mouth. "I thought you wouldn't run?" Kim tried to free herself from his grip but it was stronger and tighter than last time. "Of course I would run. I'm not going to stay here with you." He narrowed his eyes at her. "Your going to die if you stay out here."

"Then I guess I'm going to die-" "DUCK!"

Just then, a arrow flew towards their direction, and landed right above there heads. Kim groaned in pain, because they were both caught of guard Jack was forced to throw himself on top of her and he sure was heavy. "I can't believed you called _me_ fat! Get off of me!" He smirked and shifted more of his weight so that it was on her thighs. "How do I know you won't runaway again? Besides, you saw that arrow. Next time it will hit you."

"Y-You don't know that!" She stuttered out nervously. He scoffed at her. "Seriously? Are you going to pretend you didn't see that? I'm telling you, he will hit you next time." Kim pretended not to hear that he called the person a man, she was getting information about these woods piece by piece. There were a lot of things he wasn't telling her. "Fine, I'll go with you, but tomorrow I'm leaving!"

The brunet huffed in annoyance and glared at her. "I already told you! You can't-"He didn't mean to lose his temper with her, so when he was the small flash of fear in her hazel eyes he stopped. He was usually a laid back person but he could be as scary as heck if he lost control. He sighed and tried to calm himself down. "It's not safe. You'll have to stay for now," he said, his voice turning back to normal. He picked himself off the ground and held out his hand to the blonde.

Kim studies him for a bit before taking his outstretched hand, barely registering the small tickle that was sent up her arm on contact, and allowed him to help her up. Once she was back on her feet she dusted herself off and exchanged a glance with the brunet who was staring at her intently. "Are we going to go or what?" She asked a little uncomfortable. The brunet grabbed her hand and began walking back towards the cave. Better safe than sorry, right? "So..how long will I have to stay here?" The boy didn't even bother to look at her as he shrugged his shoulder. "Don't know. Maybe a week or so." Kim halted to a stop and stared at him like he was insane. "I'm sorry, I must of heard you wrong. Did you say a week?!"

The brunet stopped and stared at her like she was idiot. "Yes, Blondie. That's what I said." He turned his back to her once again but Kim pulled her am back and because he still had a firm grip on her wrist he came tumbling towards her. Luckily, he managed to force himself to stop right before he crashed into her. "Don't play games with me." The boy glared down at her before speaking. "I'm not playing games."

"Look. I don't know who you are or what you want, but I am _not_ staying in that cave you call home for a week! I have to get back to my own family, with my muffin-obsessed grandma and incredibly stupid best friend. So _please_, let me go?" Kim never pleaded, and I mean never. She was getting desperate. She had tried running away, persuading, and she was quickly running out of options! The brunet bended down so that they were face-to-face. "No." Kim threw her arms in the air in defeat. "I give up. If your not going to tell me anything important, just tell me this. What's your name?"

The brunet cracked a smile before answering, "Jack Brewer."

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Author's Note: I guess when you really think about it, it wasn't that much of a surprise. Also, tell us if you would like for us to do a twit cam and what questions would you ask. :) Now, I think I lost my cat! Can you help me find it? I think it's somewhere over by the "Post Review" button. Can you check for me?

NaturallyWritten


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note: We are so,so,so sorry! We have just been doing a lot of stuff! Don't worry, we do like you guys and we love this story! Maybe this chapter will make you forgive us? Maybe?

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Jerry was known by many things. His pranks, low intelligence, humor, and most importantly, his enthusiasm. Whenever you saw him he would either be grinning mischivously about his newest prank or jumping up and down like a maniac. The Jerry sitting on Kim's bed right now, is neither. Jerry's face was solid. If you looked at him you wouldn't be able to see the slightest ounce of sadness. He had no slumped shoulders or watery eyes. He sat on her bed, staring at nothing but the window that Kim had traveled out of less than twenty-four hours ago.

It was not the outside, but the inside where Jerry was tearing apart.

He wouldn't accept it. He wouldn't allow the idea of his best friend being dead to seep into his mind and plant itself in his heart. He couldn't, he wouldn't. There had to be another explanation for her not coming back? Maybe she fell asleep? Maybe her destanation was so beautiful she decided to stay for a while longer. No matter what he told himself though, a small logical part of his mind was mockingly whispering the truth. _She's dead, Jerry._

How hard he been trying to not listen to that voice! Telling his that it's his fault. That he could of stopped her. But the longer the day goes by, the louder that voice grows. He had been worried after the very first hour, when he had started to pace by her bed. Whispering and chanting to himself that she would be back soon and that he didn't need to worry. That he didn't need to go in and look for her. _Maybe if you did, she would be here now._

He tried not to listen to the voice but by now his will had gradually weakened. Kim's grandmother had come in a hour ago asking where Kim was and why Jerry was there. How would he tell a sweet old woman that her grandmother was killed and probably laying dead among some branches and that he was there to mourn about it? No, so instead he told him that they were playing a intense game of hide and seek and that Kim was doing a darn good job. He knew that wouldn't keep her fooled forever though.

He knew exactly what to do, he needed to go into that forest and see if Kim was alright. To see if there really is some psyco shooting arrows. If so, wouldn't he be in danger than? No, he needed help. But from who? He had no one to go to. Kim had been his one and only friend. That's why he had cared so much about her. He had no one to go to comfort him. No one even talked to him except his parents and the market people when they would yell at him for knocking their stuff down or taking to long to get his money out.

He couldn't just sit here, it was unhealthy. Sighing, he yelled a goodbye to Kim's grandmother and jumped through Kim's window and onto the dirt below. It hurt to think that just a few seconds ago, Kim was here. Happy, and ready to explore the woods. He only dismissed his thoughts and began to slowly make his way towards the market place.

Sure, Jerry was scared plenty of times. When Frank threatened to throw him in the creek filled with alligators. When Frank actually _threw_ him in the creek filled with Alligators. Now, it was different. I wasn't the tiny butterflies he used to have. His head was pounding harder than you could do on a drum, his heart stomach was twisting into giant knots and he felt as if he was going to throw up. In short terms, he was _terrified. _A feeling that he really never had to deal with and it didn't sit well with him.

There were just too many negative thoughts swimming in his head. He couldn't help but let his mind wander in the scenarios of what could of happened. He had went outside for fresh air, hoping that a different enviorment would clear his head. It still didn't work.

He trudged his feet along the ground, head bent, and shoulders dropped. What was the point of pretending that he wasn't hurt? Completely unaware of the people around him, he felt himself collide with someone, pushing the person onto the ground and spilling all of the contents in their grocery bag. His eyes widened in alarm as he registered that the person he had knocked down was indeed a girl. Her knees and hands were scraped from impact and her chestnut hair sprawled over her shoulders. She looked up to meet the person who knocked her over, her light brown eyes locked with Jerry's. She was dressed in a simple wool shirt and pants, her face covered in smudges of dirt, but Jerry swore she was beautiful.

He shook himself out of his gaze and offered out his hand. Many people didn't know or didn't care enough to look, but Jerry was a little bit of a gentleman. He didn't get on one knee and kiss her hand but he knew pretty basic manners. He wasn't a complete neanderthal. It was hard to see it though. Sometimes you have to squint really hard, maybe even tilt your head to the side and use a magnifying glass. While looking through another magnifying glass. Just kidding, it's actually not that hard to see. People just don't care enough to give Jerry a second look unless it's to scold him.

"I'm sorry, I should of been more attentive," he said while she took his hand and he pulled her up from the ground. "It's okay, it was my fault. I wasn't looking," the girl said with a smile. Her attention back to the ground where her items were sprawled against the dirt. Some items were still fine but others like bread were now covered in rocks and weeds. She sighed and bent down to pick up what she could but Jerry beat her to it. He gathered the items that weren't contaminated and placed them carefully in her basket.

She shot Jerry a smile and took the basket from him."You shouldn't apologize. I should of been watching where I was going. I tend to get distracted," Jerry confessed sheepishly while rubbing the back of his neck. "That's okay. It looks like you have a lot on your mind."

"I do!" Jerry said while throwing his hands up in the air for emphasis. "My best friend is somewhere in the forest, probably gasping for her last breath and her grandmother thinks were playing a stupid game or hide and seek!" Jerry let out a heavy breath releasing the anger he didn't even know he was hoarding. He looked up to see the girl, a eyebrow raised and a amused look dancing around her features. "Was it that obvious, that something was bothering me?" Was it just him or was she enjoying this? "Not really. Well, yes. You were staring at the ground like you were expecting a answer from it, just so you know, they can't talk." Great, now she thinks he's insane.

"I know! It's just...a lot is on my mind. It's probably best not to get into details." Jerry realizing the time he has spent talking to the friendly stranger, dusted himself and turned around to walk away. He stopped when he felt a soft hand grasp his arm, ignoring the tingles that shot up his arm, he turned around. "I don't mind, I've got time. I don't have to get back to my shift until later." A small smile creeped it's way onto his face, "Really? Where do you work?"

"My uncles diner. Not really a place I would recommend," she whispered, "He doesn't even cook! The _goat_ does!"

For the first time since Kim left, Jerry laughed. It wasn't forced or strained, but a honest laugh. The kind that vibrates in you ear way after it's done. The kind that makes the chestnut hair girl next to him, smile knowing that she's the one that made him laugh.

"Well, now I have to see this magical cooking goat so why don't we go there?"

So the two of them walked off together, engaging in mindless chatter. Not noticing their synchronized steps as they walked or the cooing old couples watching them when they walked by. "We're here!" The building was just like the others in the village; plain and simple. He probably walked by it a couple of times but failed to notice. They walked inside and slid into a booth together. The girl on one side and jerry on the other. Taking a deep breath, Jerry wasted no time explaining everything. The girl would simply nod here head and even though she had questions, she didn't say anything.

"I-I am so sorry you had to go through that," she said when he was finally finished. She reached her hand across the table and grabbed his. He flinched as tingles ran up his arm again. "I feel like it will be my fault if she's dead. I shouldn't of let her go! Especially after what happened. I-I don't know what I'd do without her," jerry confessed. She only squeezed his hand harder. "Hey, if you're going to look for her, I'd love to help you." Jerry looked up to meet the girl's eyes. She couldn't be serious?

"No. I-I couldn't let you do that. It's way to dangerous and I barely know you. I wouldn't-"

"It's way to dangerous for _you_ to go alone," She said cutting him off. Jerry looks at the girl from head to toe. Maybe she could help? "You sure?" She nodded her head and smiled, "Yeah, she means a lot to you and I have nothing better to do!" Looking at the girl Jerry knew that there was no changing her mind. He felt his lips tug into a smile. She was as determined as he was. "Okay then, I guess we're a team! So, any ideas?" Jerry honestly hasn't even thought of any besides barging into the forest which now sounds pretty idiotic.

There was silence at the table and just when Jerry was thinking to just call it a day, the girls face lit up. "I have a idea! My friend, she's a total smarty! Maybe she can help us!" At this point Jerry was up for anything and her idea sounded pretty good. "Do you think she'd do it?"

"Well, lets go ask her!" The girl yanked Jerry's hand pulling him up from the seat and dragging him out of the diner.

They passed house after house but before they could get to their final destination, Jerry stopped. Causing the girl to Jerk backwards and onto his chest. She politely takes a step back and regains balance, turning her head to fight a blush spreading onto her cheeks. "Why'd you stop?" She asked avoiding his gaze. He still smile down at her, "Your name. You never told me."

The girl gained the confidence to look at him but her eyes were filled with confusion, "Mika. Yours?"

"Well, people call me many things. _Awesome_, _Talented_, _Charming._" He winked at her as he said the last one but she just rolled her eyes. "But most call me Jerry. Nice to meet you."

Only then did she realize how close they were and she blush darkened. Jerry noticed to and only smiles at her, causing her to blush even harder. If this keeps going she'll be looking as red as a tomato in less than a hour. "My, uh, friends house is right over there." Mika says looking anywhere but Jerry's eyes. "Well, shouldn't we go?" Jerry grabbed her hand and despite her small protest pulls her towards the house. The house is split up into two parts. One side is a blacksmith shop. There are smelting machines everywhere and swords hung from the walls. A man was inside what looked like garage, hammering on a piece of metal. His lips were stretched into a hard line and his eyes looked deadly. Probably was best to stay away from him.

The other side though, looked like a normal house. You would of never guessed there was a dangerous, sword-weilding blacksmith on the other side. Mika wiggles free of Jerry's grip and runs toward the wooden door, knocking on it. A couple of seconds later the door swung open. A girl was in the doorway, a smile spread wide across her face. "Mika!" The girl yelled before lunging into the others arms. Jerry couldn't help but notice that Kim acted a lot differently than the two girls. Kim has never had any friends beside Jerry, so he had no idea how girls acted around other girls. He had a hunch he was about to find out soon enough.

After a while the girl pulled away from the embrace and turned to look at Jerry. "Hi, I'm Juile!" Jerry gave a shy wave towards her direction. He always got nervous around smart people. It made him on edge and that he would do something dumb on accident. "Julie, that's my friend Jerry. His best friend wandered into the woods last night and hasn't come back out. He's afraid she's hurt. We were wondering if you could get us some details on the woods and stuff."

"Of course I'll help!" She opened the door wider and stepped out of the way, "Come in!" The two of them walked inside and as Julie shut the heavy door behind her, just as the man by the smelting machine lifted up whatever he was hammering and gazed up at it with pride. On the other side of the dirt road, there was another man, around the same age as this man, was doing the same thing. Until he slipped up and hit his thumb with the hammer, letting a squeal of pain escape his lungs.

The other man turned towards the sound of the noise, a large smirk sliding it's way into place. "Well, It seems as though, I'm still the number one blacksmith in this village." The man across the road, still holding his thumb in pain, glared at the smirking man. "You know what, Ty? That wasn't my fault. I couldn't see, the...sun was getting in my eyes!" The man referred to as Ty only laughed. "Oh, Rudy, don't you understand? You'll never be better than me! Why won't you just give up?"

"I don't need to try to be better than you, I already am." His words would of had a stronger effect if he wasn't holding his thumb in pain while saying it. "Rudy, it just so sad to watch you struggle." He didn't give Rudy to come up with another remark, he turned on his heel and went back into his garage. "That little-"

"Dad, calm down. It's not even that serious." Rudy turned around to see his son, arms folded, and looking at him as if he was a reckless child that needed to be kept on a tight leash. "Milton, you don't understand. Me and Ty's feud is much more complex than you think." Looking at the two, they don't even look remotely similar. Milton was scrawny, had ginger hair, and was a lot more...intellectual. Rudy on the other hand was blonde and unpredictable.

You would of never guess they're related, much less father and son. Milton took almost completely after his mother, leaving him and his father to often be mistaken as friends. Heck, he was even taller! "Milton, can you go to the market and hang up these flyers. I need more customers." Milton sighed and grudgingly took the flyers from his dad. "By the way, did you see those girls going into Ty's house?" Rudy looked up and eyed him dangerously. "No, why?"

"No reason," Milton quickly said. It was dumb to bring it up. Before his dad could ask anymore questions Milton hurried off to the Market.

* * *

As Jerry walked inside the house he noticed the inside was much more glamorous than the outside. The mahogany walls walls were covered with thick framed pictures of Ty. Ty was shaking peoples hands and holding up trophies, although he couldn't imagine what a blacksmith would get a trophy for. Julie led the two into the living room. It was a large room and had all the basics a regular house would have. A fire place rested in the north wall, and a couch in front of it. The only thing seperating it was the wooden table in the middle.

Julie told them to take a seat while she went to find the book. For some reason, Jerry felt uneasy. He didn't intend for his search party to get so big and he hoped it stayed at three people. He just didn't think it was a good idea to get so many outsiders involved, they might not understand his actions and might try to stop him from doing something dangerous. If they met Kim, he bet they would be just a passionate as finding her as he was, though. Julie came back a minute later, with a book cradled in her arm, she sat down.

"Okay, suprisingly, I was only able to find one book about the woods, and it's really tattered so it might not be much of a help." She looked at Jerry as if asking if I still wanted to proceed, with a nod of his head, she opened the book. The pages were thin and feeble. Too much force and they would obviously crumble. Julie carefully fluttered through each page a little too long for Jerry.

"Julie, can you hurry it up a bit? I'm only interested what could possibly be in that forest that's keeping my friend from coming back, who if you didn't know already, could be lying dead in a pile of leaves right now. So if you don't mind, stop-" Julie shot him a glare and he quickly silenced himself. "Fine, is there any information for me to go on?"

"Well, there's this thing about a wolf?"

Julies head snapped up and she stared at me as if I was crazy. "Wolf? In the woods?" Jerry looked at her strangely and nodded his head. "This is great! That fact may just confirm my research! But if my research is correct, your friend is in trouble, wether she is dead or alive."

* * *

Author's Note: Hey, guys! How'd you like this chapter? We thought it would be a good idea to talk about how Jerry's doing. Also, there is something similar about this chapter to the second chapter of Behind The Borders. Whoever can figure it out, gets a preview! Yay!

We're also wondering if we should do a Twit Cam...if we did, would you watch it? What would you want us to say? And, StupidlyGenius is hosting a review wiki. It's where you guys send me your stories and I review them! You can find her on the Kickin' It wiki as JazzieMars!

Thank you guys so much for all the reviews! They motivate us and make us feel like were doing a good job. Which we hope we are! So please, keep em' coming! Until, next time!

_~Naturally_Written


	5. Chapter 5

_Authors' Note: Hey there!_ We know. We stink. We haven't updated since February. We apologize, but it takes a long time to edit and write one of these long chapters and school tended to get in the way of that. _But, it's summer now, so hopefully we'll be able to update for y'all more often!_ We haven't updated in forever, so enough of our talking... _On with the chapter! :) _:)

_**Disclaimer- We don't own Kickin' It,** **JONAS LA, Wizards Of Waverly Place, Austin & Ally or Sonny With a Chance. So don't throw tomatoes at us.**_

* * *

Kim woke up with a start. Sweat beaded down her face and her whole body was shaking violently with terror. Her breaths were quick and hard. She had the dream again. She calmed her breathing and began to take long, slow breaths to relax herself. This was the second time she's had this dream and she was not enjoying it. Exhausted, she laid back expecting to be meeted by the soft plush of her bed but was instead came in contact with the hard rocky ground.

She looks at her surroundings confused until the memory of the past days events come rushing back into her.

Woods. Arrow. Boy.

Her eyes scanned the cave looking for the brunette that had forced her into this situation with no luck, but she did smell a delicious scent drifting in from outside. She pushed herself off of her feet and peeked outside the walls of the cave. There was the boy from last night laying on the ground with his head rested on the outer wall of the cave. In his hand was the small bone of what used to belong to an animal.

Being trained to notice a presence he turned his head towards her direction and gave a small nod of recognition. "Come on, I have food." Kim hesitantly walked out of the cave eyeing the bone in his hand. She noticed a metal pan which contained a similar bone, but still harboring meat. She examined the piece of meat further before asking, "Uh...what is this?"

He arched an eyebrow at her as if her question wasn't reasonable. "It's meat," he answered simply. She directed her attention to him and rolled her eyes, "I can see that. I want to know what kind? What animal is this?" He smirked a little as if he was awaiting to see a humorous response from her. "Squirrel." Her eyes widen and she looks at him incredulously, "that's disgusting!"

He scoffed and strided over to the pan picked it up and held it in front of her. "Look princess, it's either this, or nothing." Kim hesitantly reached out and grabbed the piece of meat and eyes it as if it was infected. Jack laughed at her actions, "It's not poisoned; it's safe to eat." His words still didn't spark a wave of reassursance. She didn't look at him as she admitted, "I've never had meat before." His eyebrows crawled to the top his head, his eyes widened, and he watched her with his mouth slighty agape.

"Seriously."

It wasn't a question and she knew that. It was a conformation and the tone in his voice held so much disbelief that she almost didn't want to answer. "Yes, _Seriously._ My grandma didn't believe in eating meat so I never had the chance to eat it because she never bought any." His facial expression still didn't change at her explanation.

"Your kidding me."

"No, I'm not." she said while grinding her teeth. He sighed and shook his head sadly at her. "That's a shame. Hold on, I'll go get you something else." With a last sigh he turned on his heel and went back into the cave. Kim took the time to examine the meat. She picks it up scowls in disgust noticing the drips of oil coming off of it. As she placed it back in the pan, Jack came out of the cave with a mischevous smile on his features. "Here." He tosses the plant in the air and Kim barely manages to catch it. Looking at it closely she could see what it was now.

Turnips.

"Do you think I'm an animal?" she snapped at him. He only smiled, "Techincally, you are. Besides, you said you don't eat meat and this is the only edible vegetation for miles." Kim rolled her eyes. "I never said that I only eat vegetation, I just said I've never had meat before." This kid was really starting to irritate her and her patience was about to go out the window. Well... They're living in a cave so out the opening he calls a door. While Kim was trying not to explode, Jack was having fun. He found it so funny how the littlest things got on her nerves and her reactions where _beyond_ priceless.

Jack smirks at her."Okay... Then, why don't you try it?" Jack says picking up the plate of bacon again. Kim eyes it and then says, "You know... I would... But I looks like somebody ate that." **(1)** Jack puts the plate next to him and sighs deeply. "Look,"

Jack rubs his temples to try and get rid of the headache that is slowly creeping into his head. Now_ she_ was starting to annoy him and you _really_ don't want to see him when he's angry. Or be around him for that matter. But, she's also being forced to stay here with him for a week and she's probably scared and confused, so he's going to try to not explode on her. "I know you're not necessarily thrilled with the idea of staying here for a week-" "No! Really?" Kim cuts him off sarcastically. He rolls his eyes at her and then continues. _Man, this chick has the sarcastic vocabulary as big as big as the English language!_

"BUT, you're not going anywhere, so being a butthead is not going to do anything but get me angry." Jack finishes before starting off towards the cave. _Who knew women could be so much work?_ "Butthead?" Kim asks, confused. Jack turns around. "Yeah. Butthead." Kim narrows her eyes at him and giggles, "Who says that?" "ME!" Jack says defensively. Jack wasn't trying to be funny, it was supposed to be a scary insult but something tells him she didn't take it like that. Kim laughs and stands up, "And you just made fun of yourself. Congratulations!"

It's now Jack's turn to narrow his eyes at Kim. _This chick is all kinds of weird._ When Kim collects herself, she notices she's standing dangerously close to Jack. Part of her brain is telling her to step back, and another is saying to stay put. Kim sighs and fiddles with her fingers under Jack's gaze that has turned from annoyance to confusion. Kim was... a girl and Jack figured out they could be difficult. -He figured that out when he met her. But, Jack also knew that the littlest things could set them off, but things that you think will get to them, they find funny. -Or something like that. He's not an expert yet, it's only been two days.

He has a feeling he'll be an expert sooner then he would like, though.

Kim looks down and fiddles with her fingers, "I- I'm... I'm gonna go freshen up." She says just above a whisper and walks past Jack and into the cave. Why was she suddenly lost for words when their eyes connected?

Jack turns around to watch Kim retreat into the cave. Why did his brain draw a blank when their eyes where locked? He's not quite sure what just happened or why it occurred, but he slaps his arm just to snap him back into reality.

He does not have feelings for her.

Even if he did... He couldn't.

* * *

Later in the day, Jack hadn't seen Kim since their encounter at breakfast, so he decided to go look for her. -Just to make sure she didn't escape and go back home. He's not sure why she wanted to go back home so badly though. What was so great about home? Finally, he found her with her feet dipped inside a small river that ran by the side of his cave. -In his defense though, he'd been inside the cave all day.

Kim had taken her red boots off and they were placed next to her and her honey blonde hair that was tied in a half braid was now let out and flowing past her shoulders. Her dress was rolled up to the top of her knees and she looked into the woods in front of her; like it was the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen. So many thoughts where flowing through her head, but she made sure that the whole eye-contact encounter at breakfast was in the back of her head.

Jack walks over to her, leaves crunching under his boots. When he gets over to her, she doesn't look up to acknowledge his presence, nor does she move. The idea of her being a mummified body crosses through his mind but he shakes the image out. Seeing a mummified body once changes a man...

"Hey," Kim moves her head to the side, away from him. "Can I join you?" Kim's silent for a second and Jack's now starting to wonder if she's gone deaf. But- if she's a mummified body, she's dead, so she can't hear anyways. _WHAT AM I THINKING? I've gone nuts! SHUT UP BRAIN!_ Kim sighs, "If you have too." Not the answer Jack was looking for but it's good knowing she's not dead, nor deaf. Jack pulls off his shoes and sits down next to her. He rolls the ends of his pants up so they don't get wet and sticks his feet in the water.

They sit in silence for a couple of minutes and Jack figures he needs to do something. He reaches over to a bush a couple of feet away from him and pulls out Kim's sketch pad. Kim turns her head towards him when she hears the bushes ruffling. Her eyes widen and the corners of her mouth twitch upward when he turns back to her, holding her sketch book out to her.

"I forgot that I never gave it back." Kim now has a smile on her face as she looks at her book and back up at Jack. She takes it and flips through it. "...Nothing's ruined." She mumbles to herself as she flips through the pages; just as she left them. Jack smiles down at her and she looks up at him. "Thank you- I-...You have no idea what this means to me. There's 15 years of artwork in here."

Jack smiles, "And I thought the multi-colored scribbles couldn't have been done by the same person that drew a realistic looking town." Kim smiles, "That's my marketplace." Kim's thought's travel to that marketplace where her grandmother is probably flipping out about her not being there. "-Wait- YOU LOOKED IN IT?" Kim asks, glaring at him. Jack smiles weekly, "I only looked in it to see if I could find who it belonged to." He says, holding his hands up in defense. "Never. Touch. My. Book." **(2)** Kim glares at him.

He gives her a look and tilts his head slightly to the side. "Well, nonetheless, your drawings are amazing." Jack says. Kim tilts her head to the side and raises an eyebrow at him. "Really?" "Really." Kim eyes him, "Good." "Good." He teases. She laughs, "Fine." Jack smiles, knowing he got her to laugh and not get on a rage to kill him. "Fine." **(3)**

"So... What's your name?" At Jack's question, Kim turns her head towards him and shuts her book. "What?" "-You know my name but I don't know your's." Kim thinks back and then laughs slightly, "Oh yeah! I guess we where too busy not trying to kill each other and saving each other from getting killed with arrows that we never had a formal introduction." Jack shrugs, "I'm an informal kind of guy." Kim eyes his clothes and laughs, "I noticed."

Jack, being the ham that he is, holds out his hand, "Jackson Brewer." Kim raises an eyebrow and through chuckles she shakes his hand and says, "Kimberly Crawford. Nice to meet you." "You as well." Jack says in a weird accent. They both try to hold in their laughter but it doesn't work- they start busting out laughing like nuts. When they've regained their breath Jack sighs and says, "So, do you go by Kimberly or a nickname? -like Kim or Kimmy or something?"

Kim laughs, "Kim. Just Kim, please." Jack nods, "Well, it's nice to meet you Kim. -Despite what happened to us earlier yesterday and this morning..." Kim laughs as Jack trails off. "Likewise." Kim says, smiling at the river in front of her and Jack. "You know," Kim turns her head to look at a smiling Jack, tossing a rock up and down in his right hand. "I kind of like Kimmy." Jack says, winking in her direction before skipping the rock on the water. It gracefully bounces the surface of the water 3 times before sinking to the bottom.

Kim's mouth drops open a little bit than she laughs, shaking her head of honey blonde hair. "Okay, now you're just flirting." **(4) **Jack smiles down at her. "Can I help it that I'm a master at flirtation?" Jack jokes. Kim rolls her eyes, "Yeah right. The day I see the guy who chased me into the woods for a good mile and half," Jack laughs, remembering how fast Kim was yesterday and how hard he actually had to work to catch up to her. "be GOOD at making a girl melt, is the day pigs will fly."

Jack laughs, throwing his head back. Kim smiles as he lifts his head back up and looks at her. "Hey, I'd take the challenge." Kim raises her eyebrows at him. "Ah-" she snaps her fingers at him. "You just did it again." Jack smiles. There was something about this guy that got on Kim's last nerves...but yet there was something so... relaxing about him. She couldn't help but be (Somewhat) calm around him.

"Hey, do you think..." Jack starts, fiddling with another rock. "There's anyway we could pretend yesterday didn't happen? We got off on the wrong foot..." Kim laughs, "Yeah we did..." she stops and thinks about it, straightening her spine. "Actually, I'd rather if we didn't forget it. I'm so thankful that you saved me as many times as you did." Kim smiles at him. He laughs, "Oh, now who's flirting?"

Kim bumps into his side, "Still you." After a couple of minutes of silence, Jack pushes himself onto his feet and grabs two rags from the bushes. He dries his feet off and tosses the second rag to Kim. "Come on." Kim eyes him, "Why-" "Just come on." Jack says winking at her. She rolls her eyes at him, pushes herself onto her feet, and dries her feet off with the rag. Putting it where Jack threw his she grabs her boots while Jack grabs his.

Jack grabs her wrist and pulls her towards his cave again. "Still have a strong grip-" Kim winces. "OH. Sorry." Jack says as he transfers his grip to her hand. Kim tries to ignore the slight hotness coming to her cheeks as Jack led her up the side of his 'cave'. Yes. _Up_. They climbed up the side of his cave, seeing that it wasn't too steep. When they got to the top, Jack stood there and put his hands on his hips; letting go of Kim's hand.

When Kim caught her breath and stood up straight again, she saw the most beautiful sight she's ever seen. She's looking at a massive green field that must go on for miles and a beautiful sunset painting the sky a light orange, pink, purple, yellow and red. But, what really caught her eye was the giant packs of wolves that where out and playing around with each other while the parents were perched up on rocks, watching them and licking themselves.

"Wha- What is this?" Kim asks, mouth agape. "Wolf's Peak." Jack says simply. Kim now has the biggest smile on her face. "Wha-How-Wait. I'm confused." Jack laughs, "I saw you had wolves drawn many," Jack shakes his head. "many times;" Kim makes a face at him but the smile doesn't leave her face. "so I figured you'd want to see these guys."

Kim smiles even wider, "I was going to show you earlier, but I figured now is a good time since we're not trying to kill each other anymore." "..Which is ironic, because you where trying to save me FROM being killed." At Kim's response, Jack laughs. "Would you mind if I...?" Kim gestures out towards the wolves and then down at her sketch pad.

Jack nods, "Of course. That's why I brought you up here, stupid." Kim rolls her eyes at the use of 'Stupid' as her nickname and was about to come up with a nickname for Jack but she decided against it. Plopping down on the edge of the rock, hanging her legs of the edge; she took her bag off her shoulder and grabbed her pencils.

_The irony... I probably would have run into this guy anyway- even if I did make it through the woods unharmed._

* * *

"So," Jack is seated next to her and has tried to be quiet for a half an hour now, watching Kim sketch the scene in front of her... but he's now getting bored and NEEDS to talk about something... anything.

It's not everyday you have another human around you all the time.

Kim raised an eyebrow in his direction to show him she was listening but she never took her eyes off the paper. "Why did you idiotically come into the woods in the first place?" Kim sighs, "Actually, I wanted to see this." "A handsome man?" Jack jokes, referring to himself. Kim raises an eyebrow in his direction before giving him a look. "Wolf's Peak... Doofus." Jack laughs as he leans back on his hands. It was extremely easy to mess with her and he was getting as much pleasure out of it that he could. "-Is that why you came back the second time?" Jack asks after a couple of minutes of silence.

"More or less." Kim nods, glancing up at the wolves. "Since we're asking questions; what kept shooting the arrows at us?" The sun was starting to go down and Kim was loosing drawing light. "UH-" Jack quickly stands up, looking at the sunset. "I have to go... right now." Kim looks up at him. "Why? Where?"

Jack sighs, "It's nothing that concerns you." Kim doesn't know why but she felt a little hurt by his words. "Just... don't go anywhere. OK?" Kim sighs, looking down at her notebook, fiddling with her pencil. "Fine."

"Great, I'll be back in a couple of hours." "WAIT-" Kim stands up. "A COUPLE HOURS? Where in the heck are you going for a COUPLE HOURS?" Kim yells at him, causing Jack to have to rub his ears to make sure they still worked. "It's nothing." "Would you stop being so cryptic and just tell me what in the heck is going on!?" Kim yells at him. He gives her a sympathetic look. "Look; I wish I could tell you. But now is not the time."

"When would that time be? When I rip your head off?" Kim questions, putting her hands on her hips. She was suddenly not liking this guy so much anymore. Back to square one. "No. I'm sorry. I'll be back- Don't go anywhere; Okay? I promise I will explain everything when the time is right." Jack says before jumping off the cave and onto the ground; landing like a cat- perfectly on his feet. "I mean it!" He yells up to her before disappearing into the woods.

Kim lets out an angry breath at him before turning her head to look at the wolves.

Why couldn't she be a wolf?

That would make so many things much easier.

* * *

**(1) We don't own JONAS LA. "A Wasabi Story"**

**(2)Austin and Ally fan anyone? :D**

**(3) Sonny with a Chance reference. :) **

**(4) Wizards Return: Alex VS Alex reference :)**

Reviews help us update faster! ;)_ We hope that was entertaining for you and well worth the wait, so we'll see you in the next chapter! _Have a wonderful rest of your day! :) _:)_

_~Naturally_Written


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